Business Directories

Saudi aims to ease burden on cities

makkah, June 20, 2011

Saudi Arabia plans to implement a new strategy to achieve all round development of the kingdom and resolve the problem of congestion and overcrowding in major cities, a senior official said.

The key is to ease the burden on major cities and support the development of other provinces, making them self-sufficient, said Dr. Abdul-Aziz bin Abdullah Al-Khudairi, deputy governor of Makkah province.

He was speaking after inaugurating Future Makkah 2011, the Makkah International Urban & Infrastructure Development Event, at the Jeddah Center for Forums and Events.

Held under the patronage of Prince Khalid Al-Faisal bin Abdulaziz, Governor of Makkah Province, Future Makkah has been organized to support the Makkah Development Plan, providing a dedicated business-to-business networking platform that supports public and private investment initiatives in the Holy City of Makkah.

“Projects worth billions of dollars are being initiated in the Makkah region, especially residential projects that are being undertaken to solve the housing problem in Makkah. Further, the immediate emphasis will be to prevent project delays and complete unfinished projects,” said Dr Al-Khudairi.

Future Makkah, which runs till June 21, features an exhibition, the Future Makkah Development Forum and a post-conference workshop.

More than 5,000 local, regional and international investors, high net-worth individuals, government and municipality companies, construction, infrastructure and utility companies will visit the event, seeking to capitalise on over SR100 billion government expenditure for projects encompassing infrastructure, utilities, investment, financing, real estate and tourism sectors, said a statement.

The Future Makkah Development Forum is hosting in-depth discussions and presentations concerning key topics, including Makkah and Saudi Arabia’s increasing power and water requirements, ongoing hospitality projects for the Holy City, transport development, the growing need for medical centres and services in the Holy City, availability of financing facilities, profitable investment opportunities in Makkah and the wider kingdom, public-private partnership prospects, land values and specialised project management strategies.

High-profile developers such as Jabal Omar Development Company and Elaf Group are also discussing their development plans in the region, it said.

Hussain Al Harithy from National Exhibitions Company, which is co-organising Future Makkah along with IIR Middle East, said: “We are deeply honoured by the support of Prince Khalid Al-Faisal bin Abdulaziz, Governor of Makkah Region, which reaffirms the strategic importance of Future Makkah in helping achieve the long-term objectives of the Makkah Development Plan. Future Makkah gathers the most prominent personalities in government, business and civil society to discuss the ambitious development program that is being undertaken in the Makkah Region and its impact on the growth of the national economy.”

Deep Marwaha, group director, IIR Middle East, welcomed the forum audience and provided an overview of the major development projects that will be undertaken in Makkah over the coming years. – TradeArabia News Service